Versailles, Grand Trianon, (Le Parc) 1901

This print of Versailles, Grand Trianon, (Le Parc) was made by Eugène Atget. It’s got that old-timey sepia thing going on, which, you know, sets a mood. The light is pretty even, making everything feel a bit like a memory. I’m really drawn to how the texture comes through – you can almost feel the gravel under your feet. And that urn! It’s got this delicate carving, but it’s also crumbling, which gives you the sense of time passing. Look at the way the light hits the stone; it's so subtle, like he's trying to capture the ghost of a moment. Atget, he was all about documenting what was there, and there’s a melancholy in that. It reminds me a bit of Bernd and Hilla Becher, those German photographers who did all those water towers. There’s something about seeing things as they are, with all their flaws and fading glory, that makes you think. It’s like, what’s gone, what’s still here, and what will be? You know?